Truth's Entertainment
by BlueRoseRabbit
Summary: - - ON HIATUS - - L had a heart attack in Japan when Kira wanted him gone. Truth was bored and decided to send him to Ed and Al's world for entertainment, where L meets Al and Ed outside the fifth laboratory when Truth sticks him inside 66 (Barry The Chopper). What was the toll for L to come over? If L was able to come, who could follow?
1. Chapter 1 - Truth And His Games

"Heh."

L saw Light smirk as he pretended to be clutching L to him, upset over the imminent death of a friend. L realized something during his heart attack and Light's smirk.

Light had to be Kira. L was right all along.

That was his last thought as his eyes closed.

L found himself standing in a bright white place. A door was behind him and a door was in front of him. Both seemed similar. There was also a figure crouching in the same position that L was usually in sitting in front of the door across from L.

"Hello." A mouth on the crouching figure grinned.

"Hello. Who're you?" L asked calmly. After some brief observation, L found that the only two exits from this place were the two doors. Since he could not go back (he was dead in Japan), he had to go forward. It was simple as that. Just like a game.

"I am what you call 'God', 'Truth', 'the Universe', etc. Most importantly, I am 'All', I am 'One', and I am 'You'." The figure grinned wickedly.

"Well, if you have so many names, it's hard to pick just one to call you." L did not like the idea of two of himself, though their personalities seemed different.

"Call me Truth." The crouching figure, Truth, waved his hand dismissively. "Now, onto the more important topic of discussion. You would like to know why you are here, correct?"

"I have deduced the Light-kun, no, Kira, has killed me." L stopped after that. _Can't deduce anything else without evidence or facts._

"Anything else? No 'This is the gate to the afterlife' or 'this is the afterlife' or-"

"There is no more information to figure things out from."

"Good." Truth grinned. "You're just what I had hoped for. This'll be fun. Now, the reason you're not dead yet is that I'm bored, and you could entertain me by shaking things up a bit in _his _world."

"Who's world?"

"You'll see soon enough. Now, since you're so ignorant." L bristled a little, but kept his outward appearance emotionless. "I'll let you in on a little secret. Since you have no choice in the matter, your toll will not be huge."

"A toll, to go from here to there?"

"Correct."

"What will I pay? I'm guessing, since you're the universe, you don't want the spare change in my wallet." L had almost reached for the incredible amount of yen he had on him at all times.

"Good, good, this'll be great. I don't want your money, it's true. I'll be taking something else. Since I'm so nice, I'll even let you glance a bit of the Ultimate Truth." He grinned. "Now, be on your way." The door behind L started opening, and black hands with long, ribbon-like arms grabbed him and started pulling him back. L's first reflex was to struggle, but he quashed the feeling and relaxed, letting the hands drag him through the door. He saw the crouching Truth watching him, a sly grin on his face, and he felt an odd sense of fear.

L awoke in a suit of armor.

"GAAAH, WHAT THE HELLLLLL?!" A voice echoed around him. L looked around and found a loose panel in the armor. He opened it and stepped out. He saw that the armor he was in had been fighting another suit of armor, and two people who looked like military officers of some sort had guns pointing at the fuzzy armor that L had been hiding in. Both people were shocked. The other suit of armor, nicely non fuzzy in any way (except for the loincloth), assumed a fighting stance. L just stood there, slouching. It was nighttime, and the building beside them was cracking.

"Who're you?" The military officers recovered from their shock quickly and focused one gun on the armor and one gun on L.

"Who're you?" L replied, dodging the question. He did not like the looks of this. Walking, talking, hollow armor, and then another armored fellow whom he suspected was hollow, too.

"Time to make my quick getaway!" The armored man L came out of started to run away. L stood, watching it all play out. The building started to rumble.

"Oh no you don't!" The blonde military officer pointed his gun at the fleeing hunk of metal.

"We should go if we don't want to die." L reached out a hand and a piece of the building fell into it. He stared at it curiously.

"HOW CAN YOU BE SO CALM ABOUT THIS?!" The officer yelled at him exasperatedly.

L turned his head to see an oddly dressed, palmtree-headed fellow walking over to the silver-armored man, who had been trying to get into the collapsing building.

"Howdy, y'all. I've come to drop off some baggage." He dumped a golden haired, bleeding kid on the ground unceremoniously. "You have to watch him more carefully. He's precious resources." The strange one waved his hand annoyed. L watched his footsteps as he walked away. No one else was watching the palmtree-headed man leave. His footprints suggested that he was denser than normal, the way that they were deep in the ground when the teen himself did not look like he weighed much.

"What are you people doing?! Come on!" The blonde man picked up the blonde kid and carried him on his back. The short haired woman ran after him, and so did the armor. L followed.

The building exploded.

. . . . . . . . . .

"Phew, I think we can stop running now." Ross doubled over, panting. So did Brosh, who was carrying Edward. Al stood straight, and the person who followed them stood slouching. He was chewing his thumb nail, watching them with black eyes.

"How did you come out of that guy's armor? Were you hiding in him the whole time?!" Al stared at the strange man. He was wearing blue pants and a long-sleeved white shirt, but no shoes. His skin was almost white, it was so pale. His eyes were black, and his messy hair was black as well. He had dark shadows under his eyes.

"How is it that both you and the other armor are hollow?" He asked.

"What?!" _How had he known? If he knew about me, does that mean that he knows something about the Philosopher's Stone? _Al put a finger to where his mouth would've been if he had one. "Ssshhh, Ross and Brosh don't know that." He glanced uneasily over to where Brosh and Ross were recovering from the run.

"Hmm? I see." The stranger stared at him for a few moments longer and then looked around. "We are at a hospital." He watched Ross run to the building, greeting someone and persuading them to let Edward heal there. "Owned by a friend of the woman?" He asked, turning toward Brosh.

"Yes." He said, then eyed the man suspiciously. "Who are you?"

Ross ran out of the hospital, calling for Brosh. "Bring him in!" She said. The stranger forgotten, Al helped Brosh carry his brother inside.

If he really was his brother.

. . . . . . . . . .

The armored person and the male soldier carried the kid into the hospital, and they got him checked in. L followed everyone inside. Eventually, the kid was treated and sleeping. The armor man walked off, obviously upset by something. L thought the armor wasn't really an adult. His voice and the way he spoke suggested that he was a kid, too, though that couldn't be possible, he was too large, but wait, he was hollow, so it didn't matter how old he was, and this was all rather strange. Thoughts buzzed through L's head and he sorted them out as efficiently as possible. He started making a mental to-do list.

_1. Find out where I am_

_2. Find out who all these people are_

_3. Figure out whether steps 4 & 5 should be switched_

_4. Decide what name to go by_

_5. Decide whether to tell truth to these people or lies (can they be trusted?)_

_6. Learn why the armor can walk and talk and feel(?) and still be hollow_

_7. Get something sweet to eat_

Reviewing his list, L bumped everything down a step and put number seven as number one.

. . . . . . . . . .

Ed knew something was wrong with the creepy guy right away.

For one, he was sitting in an odd crouching position in a chair in front of the hospital bed Edward was lying in. Secondly, he was eating a slice of cake quickly, and having a few strawberries from a bowl, all while staring directly at Ed. Third, his skin was almost white, like he spent absolutely no time in the sun, and he had deep shadows under his eyes.

"Oh, you're awake" Brosh entered the room with Ross.

"Hey, who the hell is this?!" Edward stared at the crouching figure, who stared back.

"I don't know, he said he wouldn't tell us anything until we got him some cake, so we did, but he hasn't said anything else. He's been keeping vigil over you."

Edward shivered at the thought of this creeper staring at him all night. He winced at the pain in the side. "Damn, this is no time to be in the hospital. I was so close to figuring out the truth." He sighed.

"Sir! Please excuse us for what we are about to do!" The two officers snapped to attention.

"Huh?"

Maria Ross slapped him.

. . . . . . . . . .

L watched the scene in front of him. The officers were clearly angry at this kid for sneaking out and getting himself and his brother almost killed (the suit of armor was his sibling? How odd). The officers finished their rant and snapped to attention again, sweating profusely.

"Please forgive us for our violent actions and words unfit for those of lower rank!"

"I'm the one at fault." The golden haired and eyed kid was saying.

"And.. the punishment for the slap?" The woman with the mole under her eye, whom L had learned was called Maria Ross, asked nervously.

"I'm not going to do anything."

"Phew." Both military officers relaxed. Ross braced herself against a wall and Brosh put his hand over his heart, gasping.

"Why are you so nervous?" The kid, Edward, looked confused.

"You must have a high military position, neh?" L spoke up. It was the kid's first time hearing his voice.

"Yes, he's equivalent to a Major. How did you know that?" Ross eyed him suspiciously.

"It was obvious."

"Anyway, one word from you could get us fired." Brosh said.

"I didn't join the military for the status, and you don't have to talk so formally to a kid." Edward Elric smiled. The military pair grinned back. "Anyway, who is this fellow?" He pointed at L. L watched him, not blinking. He set aside the cake plate after eating the last bit, and put the fork down, too.

"You are not the age that your height suggests you are." L deduced.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT THAT HE COULD BE CRUSHED BY A FLEA?!" The boy yelled angrily in L's face. L didn't flinch, or even blink. He had good self control.

"Anyway, you should probably get some sleep." Maria Ross put a hand on L's shoulder. "You must be tired from watching Edward all night."

L wasn't tired, but he knew he needed sleep, so he allowed Ross to lead him to the military apartments. She posted a guard by his door, and gave him a third floor room.

She bid him a good evening and closed the door behind her. L glanced around, looking for a weapon if he ended up needing one. The only thing he saw was a pen and notepad. He wrote down his revised checklist on it, and looked at it.

_1. Get something sweet to eat _

_2. Find out where I am_

_3. Find out who all these people are_

_4. Figure out whether steps 4 & 5 should be switched_

_5. Decide what name to go by_

_6. Decide whether to tell truth to these people or lies (can they be trusted?)_

_7. Learn why the armor can walk and talk and feel(?) and still be hollow_

He had accomplished almost none of his goals yet. He knew their names: Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric, Maria Ross, and Denny Brosh, but he didn't truly know them. He needed to know their goals, their alliances, and their secret agendas. He was pretty sure that Denny Brosh was an airhead like Matsuda, but he wasn't sure about any of the others. He did make note (in his head) that Edward Elric was easily angered when you mentioned his size. That could work to L's advantage if Edward was an enemy.

L tore the paper off of the notepad and ate it. After he was done, he curled up on the unfamiliar bed and closed his eyes, preparing for sleep.

Sleep didn't come.

L lay still as a rock, with an empty head, for an hour.

Sleep still remained elusive.

He got up and paced the room. _Could this have been the toll? Never sleeping again?_ It was bearable, L supposed. It gave him more time to think. However, this would probably mean that he'd have to eat more to fuel his body. Since sitting in a room pretending to sleep for hours more would be incredibly boring, L decided to leave. The guard would probably try to stop him if he went out the door, so L opened the window. He looked down. The three story drop would kill him if he jumped, so he looked up for a reachable windowsill. Seeing none, he looked down for one. He could drop down to the one down and to the left, so he did, catching himself on the ledge with one hand. L chided himself for leaving the window open, but he couldn't reach it now. He dropped down to another windowsill, and then down to the ground. The grass was soft under his feet.

There was only a little bit of grass surrounding the apartments, and then the rest was pavement. He needed to find some maps. He went through the city by alleyways, mostly, avoiding contact with people and their certain-to-be-asked questions. He eventually came across a house with a window showing stacks and stacks of books on the inside.

_ Should I go inside? Trespassing is illegal. _He glanced inside. The books, which could contain valuable knowledge, were tempting. _It would be no good to be stuck in a country with no knowledge about anything._

L opened the window. _Does no one lock these? Do they have that good of a police protection? A small crime rate? No, this person is probably just careless. _He left the window open in case he needed to make a quick getaway.

He looked through the books, finding a few that could be useful. They were on the history of Amestris (the country he found out he was in), something called alchemy, and some books about state alchemists and the military. He climbed into a chair, sat in his usual crouching, frog-like position, and began to read.

L learned much from the books he picked up. Amestris's history was bloody ever since the current Fuhrer, Bradley, rose to power. The state alchemists were like human weapons used by the military, especially during the Eastern Rebellion in Ishval. Alchemy worked like so:

Comprehension - Understanding the inherent structure and properties of the atomic or molecular makeup of a particular material to be transmuted, including the flow and balance of potential and kinetic energy within.  
Deconstruction - Using energy to break down the physical structure of the identified material into a more malleable state so as to be easily reshaped into a new form.  
Reconstruction - Continuing the flow of energy so as to reform the material into a new shape.

Also, there was the law of equivalent exchange. To gain something, something of equal value must be lost. It often used a certain type of circle called a transmutation circle, which contains specific runes to channel and use energy to transmute. One must also be careful of a rebound from when one goes too far with it or is in way over their head. Along with this, transmutating humans and gold is breaking the law. Human transmutation is considered the ultimate taboo by the public.

The Ultimate Truth that L saw made a lot more sense. He felt that he had a rather good understanding of alchemy now, and wanted to try some. He put the feeling aside and pulled a folded map out of one of the books and unfolded it, holding it up gently in the air using his thumb and forefinger on both hands. He began studying the countries' geographies.

"Alright, give me one minute to put a kettle of tea on- KYAAA!"

L almost swore. The mousy woman had come in too fast for him to sneak away.

"Sheska?! What is it?!" A man ran into the room. He had glasses, cropped black hair, and beard stubble. He wore the same military uniform as Brosh and Ross.

The woman, Sheska, had bobbed brown hair and round glasses. She looked frightened.

"Freeze!" The man whipped out a gun and pointed it at L, who was still holding up the map. L didn't move, weighing his options quickly and carefully.

_I__ could try to convince the man that I mean no harm. I could ask for him to call Maria Ross. I could go for the window, but he could have very good aim with that gun there. Surrender, fight, or flee? I can't get over there fast enough to fight without him shooting me (probably). Surrender would be easiest, but the consequences could be severe. Fleeing could get me injured._

_ What do I do?_

. . . . . . . . . .

**Alright, well, here's the first chapter for my first crossover fanfic. And be warned, L's presence is going to fuck some shit up.**

**Excuse my language.**

**Until next time!**

**~Rabbit**


	2. Chapter 2 - Lies And Secrets

**I only partially own the twisted up plot line.**

. . . . . . . . . .

"Thank god she wasn't that angry." Edward sighed in relief. He had just finished a call with Winry when the phone rang again. "Hello?" He picked it up hesitantly.

"Fullmetal? Is this you? We have a situation at Sheska's place." Hughes's voice came through the phone.

"Is she okay?!" Ed asked quickly.

"Yeah, she's fine, but the weirdest thing happened. Some guy broke into her house... He didn't take anything, just read some books and was looking at a map." Hughes sounded really confused.

"What did the guy look like?" Edward asked.

"Tall, probably twenty years old or so, black hair, black eyes, looked like he hadn't slept in a while, and his skin was as white as snow... His clothes were pretty weird, too, blue pants, no shoes, and a white long sleeved shirt." Hughes really was confused, now he could tell, but this was bad. Edward groaned. "You know him, Ed?" Hughes had heard Edward groan.

"We're not sure if he means any harm or not, but he was with somebody who fought Al when we found him. He has not harmed anybody yet, and he will pretty much do anything for cake." Ed ran his hands through his hair. "He was supposed to be in the military apartments getting rest.. Hold on, I'll handle this- Second Lieutenant!" Ed called for Second Lieutenant Maria Ross. She ran to him quickly.

"Yes, sir?" She saluted, probably out of habit. Edward waved a hand impatiently.

"Never mind the formalities, our guest has been out looking for information."

"What do you mean? He's been in his room this whole time-"

"Then how did he break into Sheska's house? Did he split into two people?" Edward asked impatiently.

"I'm just good at sneaking out." Came a voice.

"I see. Well, anywa- What the hell?! Why did you break into Sheska's house?!" Edward stood abruptly realizing that the stranger had returned.

"I needed information." The guy said unfazed.

Edward snarled, then noticed the minor scrapes on his hands. "What happened to you?"

"Hello? Fullmetal?" Hughes's voice came through the phone. Ed put it back to his ear.

"What?"

"The guy is pretty nimble, if you're wondering how he got away. He threw the map in my face and leapt out an open window, dodging my bullets. He's a really fast runner, too." Hughes sounded a little impressed but wary. "You should probably watch him carefully. Who is he, anyway?"

"He's called-" Ed paused, realizing the man's name was never mentioned.

"Lewis." The man, Lewis, watched him carefully.

"-Lewis. He's called Lewis, apparently. What should I do with him?" Edward asked Hughes over the phone.

"Keep him under lock and key. I'll come over and interrogate him."

"'Kay. Ross!" He called to Maria Ross, whom had been glaring at Lewis for causing so much trouble. "Lock him up somewhere and keep him there 'til Hughes gets here."

"Yes, sir!" Ross saluted and pulled a gun on Lewis. "We'll be moving you to a cell, Mr. Lewis. You've abused your privileges." Lewis said nothing, just whistled a tune as Ross led him away. Edward pulled the phone to his ear to see if Hughes had anything else to say, but he had hung up.

"Get the guy some bandages for his hands!" Edward called after her. He sighed. _What have I gotten myself into now?_

. . . . . . . . . .

"So, Mr. Lewis, where are you from?" The man, Hughes, sat down in front of L. They were in a dark cell. L was handcuffed to the table and a lamp shine down in his face to make him feel nervous. L knew the drill. It was usually him asking the questions, though (not actually in the same room as the prisoner; that would be disastrous).

"Xing." L lied. He browsed through his new knowledge Truth had given him and found that there were loads of languages in there. That was probably why he could speak Amestrian so well.

"Oh? And how did you get here, Mr. Lewis?" Hughes looked at his nails.

"Kidnapped." L faked a yawn, looking rather bored.

"Why is your name not Xingese sounding?" Hughes eyed him warily. L knew he had slipped up with the name, but quickly found a way to fix it.

"My mother was Amestrian." L had decided earlier not to trust these people with real information. He was not sure how the leader of the country would react when he learned about the space-time jump.

"Why did you break into the woman's house?" Hughes glared.

"Needed info. I did not know where I was. I had been kidnapped, you know." L faked another yawn. "Do you happen to have any tea?"

"Do you think this is some kind of joke?!" Hughes stared incredulously.

_ Of course. Your life, my "life", this interrogation, it is all just one big jape._ That is what L wanted to say. Instead, he stuck to his role. "Of course not. I'm just trying to make this as easy for you as possible." He replied smoothly. "I'm rather hungry and want to get this over with."

"If all prisoners were as helpful as you.." Hughes sighed. "Last name?"

"Min." He made up what he thought was a Xingese sounding name.

"Occupation?"

"Prisoner."

"Excuse me?" Hughes looked confused, then laughed. "What did you do before you became a prisoner, Mr. Lewis?"

L tried to think of something. "Not much, different little things here and there."

"Are you a spy? What is your purpose in Amestris?"

"I thought we answered that already. I am here because I was kidnapped. Nothing more, nothing less." L kept a completely blank face.

"Just a formality, Lewis Min." Hughes wrote down a few notes and stood. "See you around, Lewis."

"How long will I be kept in this cell?"

"We're taking you out of this one and moving you back to the apartments, but you won't be getting out so easy this time." Hughes laughed as the guards started escorting him out.

"Can I get some more books and a map?" L asked. If Hughes said no, he'd just have to go steal some, but he figured he should be a "good little prisoner" and ask.

"What kind of books?" He asked.

"Lieutenant Colonel!" The metal armed kid was wheeled around the corner by Brosh. "Have you seen Al?"

"Alright, Lewis, go find Al and convince him to take you to a library." Hughes patted Edward on the shoulder and walked off. The guards near Lewis stepped aside to allow him to go. Edward gave him a skeptical look.

"Uh... is that a good idea?" He asked.

"He's a suit of armor." L pointed out. "He'd be hard to kill if I was a danger anyway."

There was a pause.

"GAH, FINE!" Edward threw his hands in the air. "But if you hurt him-" Edward drew his hand across his throat in a cutting motion. "Got it?" He glared. L only nodded.

He wandered down the halls all around and about, but no sign of a hulking hollow case of metal. L was bored and wanted to go to the library soon, with or without Alphonse Elric. That, of course, happened to be when he found him, just staring at a broken mirror.

"We're going to the library." L tapped Alphonse on his metal arm. The guy just turned and looked at him. "You know, books, information, maps, charts..." L coaxed. Al nodded and followed him out.

They wandered around for a bit.

"You don't actually know the way to the library, do you?" Alphonse asked.

"Nope."

"Fine, follow me." Al sighed. He led him to a large library. A really, really large library. L was pleased. They were admitted only because a clerk had seen Alphonse here with his older brother before. L grabbed numerous titles and pulled out a map. He spread it across a table, using books to hold down the corners. Once he had crouched in his chair correctly, he opened some history books. He had come across something at Sheska's that he wanted to verify.

. . . . . . . . . .

Al stared out the window._What if I really am nothing but Brother's creation to replace the real Alphonse Elric? _Al had been upset for a while now, but nobody seemed to notice or care.

Alphonse jerked when he saw the man stand abruptly. "What's the matter?" He asked. The man gave him a look that screamed mistrust.

"I'm hungry, we're going to go get something sweet to eat." He started putting books back on shelves. Al was confused but he went to help. They finished a few minutes later.

"Did you put the map back?" Al asked him. The man nodded. They walked to the military apartments. Once there, the man rushed to his rooms. "I never caught your name, sir!" Al called after the vanishing figure.

The man paused. "Lewis Min." He hurried away.

_ How odd._

. . . . . . . . . .

L paced his room. He unfolded the map he had hidden in his shirt. Grabbing a pencil, he furiously started drawing on the map. _Bloodbath here... Eastern Rebellion.. Battle here... _He circled multiple locations and connected them in a circle. He pulled out an advanced alchemy book he had hidden in his pant leg and opened it to the dog-eared page. He continued connecting the circled locations using different figures. His eyes widened when he stepped back and saw the design. _It's almost a human transmutation circle._

_ This country is just one big human transmutation circle._

_ Why? What would someone want to do with a circle that big?_

. . . . . . . . . .

**L is a smart one. I wonder what will happen next, hmm?**

**~Rabbit**


	3. Chapter 3 - Won't Fail Again

**Thank you so much for your reviews. They make me so happy.**

. . . . . . . . . .

L had not told anyone about his discovery, simply because he wasn't ready to be killed yet. He didn't know who was involved in the plot and who wasn't, and telling the wrong person could mean assassination.

He had a few hunches. He was a detective; this was what he was trained to do. He had a feeling that some of the important ones were involved, such as the leader of the country. L highly doubted that the president or fuhrer or chairman or whatever hadn't noticed by now.

L was momentarily distracted by the sight of the hollow armor being attacked on the roof of the hospital by his golden-eyed brother. They sparred for a while before the gold one threw a sheet in the armor's face and threw a launching kick, sending him sprawling. Seeing as everything was in order, L gave a brief nod in the unknowing boys' direction, acknowledging their fighting capabilities. Some girl was with them, but that didn't interest L at all. Hughes, however, was another matter entirely.

_I__s he trustworthy? _L wasn't quite sure. He decided to go exploring, but he left a note this time.

_Going exploring. Don't bother looking for me, I'll come back if I can. I don't have any money, remember?_

_~Lewis M._

He hoped that would be sufficient enough. He looked out the peephole in the door and saw that there was a customary guard, but L figured he'd be fine. He walked out of the room.

The guard, of course, told him to go back to his room. Since leaving through a window wasn't an option, he delivered a swift chop to the back of the man's neck and attached the note to his forehead. He grabbed a pen and added one more thing to the bottom of it:

_P. S. The guard is only unconscious._

L took the guard's pulse just to make sure that was the truth. Feeling rather satisfied, he walked away.

. . . . . . . . . .

Maria Ross was pissed off when she went to get Lewis only to find that his guard was sleeping on the job. She kicked him with a boot.

"I expected better from-" She began, but stopped when she saw the note left on his forehead. She read it, got mad, and kicked a wall. Today was not her day.

She walked to the nearest phone and rang up to Hughes's office.

. . . . . . . . . .

Izumi noticed the man and sucked in a breath.

"Izumi?" Her beloved husband asked. He sounded concerned.

Black eyes and black hair...

"Izumi, are you alright?" Sig put a hand on her shoulder, startling her. She gave him a reassuring look.

"See that boy over there? He looks like what our child would've grown up to be like, don't you think?" She smiled sadly.

"Maybe. I think our boy would have the sense to at least wear some shoes." Sig said gruffly, taking Izumi's hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Izumi looked back at the boy, startled. He couldn't have been older than twenty, yet there he was, pale, thin, slouching, shoeless, and wearing bandages on his hands. His eyes brushed over Izumi, then really looked at her, and asked her something in a language she did not understand. That was odd, since seeing Truth had given her lots of knowledge on languages. Seeing her blank look, he tried again.

_ I'm sorry, do you know this language_?" He asked in Xingese.

"Yes, but it's not my natural language." She replied in Amestrian.

"I apologize." He murmured. "You looked like you were from _Nihon*._.."

"Where?" Izumi asked. She had never heard of "Nihon".

"Never mind, it's not important." He said. They were distracted by a blonde man muttering in an alleyway.

"My life's goal will soon be accomplished." He said as he stared at his hands.

"Are you alright?" Izumi asked. The black haired fellow narrowed his eyes as the golden haired man turned towards them.

"Oh, yes, just fine." He smiled. He looked tired.

"You look familiar." The black haired fellow narrowed his eyes at the blonde haired man.

"How about we get introductions done," Sig suggested. Being the huge, intimidating man that he was, introductions happened.

"Van Hohenheim." The golden haired man nodded curtly.

"Lewis. Lewis Min." The dark haired fellow scratched the back of his head.

"Well, I'm Izumi Curtis, and this is my husband, Sig Curtis." Izumi held out her hand for them to shake. Lewis reluctantly shook her hand, then Hohenheim did, too. "What brings you two to Central?" She asked.

"A foolish mistake." Lewis murmured.

"I'm working on a project of mine." Hohenheim adjusted his tie.

"What kind of project?" Izumi asked curiously.

"If you must know, it involves a Philosopher's Stone." He said. "Well, I must be off. Since I believe you are kind, I'll give you some advice. Get out of the country." Van Hohenheim gave a slight wave and hurried away.

"I should be going, as well." Lewis said, looking up at the cloudy sky.

"Well, it was nice meeting you." Izumi gave him a motherly smile and he left. "That was strange." She remarked to her husband. He grunted his agreement.

. . . . . . . . . .

L didn't actually leave. He tailed the golden haired fellow, Hohenheim. There was something wrong with his "get out of the country" statement. It was too coincidental. Did he know about the countrywide human transmutation circle? If so, did he know what it was used for?

"How long are you going to follow me?" Van Hohenheim halted.

"How did you know I was there?" L approached the man warily.

"Why are you following me?" The man turned to stare him right in the eyes. L met his gaze.

"You know about the countrywide circle." L guessed. Hohenheim narrowed his eyes.

"How did you know about that? Are you here to kill me, homunculus?" He stood his ground, but L could see he was not pleased about the "homunculus".

"I am unaware as to what a homunculus is, and I certainly don't want to kill you, unless, of course, you gave me good reason." L kept on guard, watching for any signs of attack from Hohenheim.

"You're not from around here, are you?" Hohenheim asked suddenly.

"And what of it, if I'm not?"

Hohenheim sighed. "You're a rather evasive fellow. Come, now, why don't we discuss this some other place. Alleys don't give off the most friendly impression."

"Fair enough." L agreed. This was good; a public place (if that's where they were to be headed) meant less of a chance the man would attack him. L followed the man to a small cafe, where L ordered a slice of cake and Hohenheim chose to not eat. L sat in his usual position in the chair and Hohenheim stared curiously.

"Why do you sit in that way?" He asked.

"If I sat normally, my reasoning capabilities," L began, then took a bite of cake (the waitress brought it out), chewed, swallowed, and continued, "would drop by 40%."

"I...see..." Hohenheim frowned but didn't comment further.

"So," L gave Hohenheim a look. "You're the Elric's father."

"Yes." Hohenheim frowned.

"You know about the countrywide circle. What's it being used for?" L asked.

"How did you figure out that this country was just a big human transmutation circle?" Hohenheim asked curiously.

"Anyone with a history book, an alchemy book, a pen, and a map could figure it out." L said with a fake yawn (he didn't sleep, after all).

"Well, I guess I could tell you what's going on, if you managed to figure this out already. A homunculus is like a fake human with extra powers. The seven in existence are named for the 'seven deadly sins', and they need sacrifices to use for the opening of the transmutation circle." Hohenheim began.

"What will the circle be used for?" L asked.

"Everyone in this country will be used to make a Philosopher's Stone." Hohenheim said grimly. L could barely stop his eyes from widening in shock (though he managed it). His sense of justice was screaming. Millions or billions of innocent people would be turned into a rock? All those lives lost- What murderer would do this?! It was like a Kira case all over again.

"What are we going to do to stop it?" L asked.

"'We'?"

"You don't expect me to just lie down and allow a murderer to kill people, do you?" L raised an eyebrow.

"You're going to help, then?" Hohenheim frowned thoughtfully.

"I am." L finished off his cake.

_ I won't fail this time._

. . . . . . . . . .

***Nihon means Japan in Japanese**

**I'm not the only one who realized that Izumi is a Japanese name, right?**

**Okie dokie, see ya next time!**

**~Rabbit**


	4. Author's Note

**I'm really, really sorry, but I'm putting this story on hiatus. I may take it down. The idea itself is up for adoption, really, anyone can do something similar to this if they like.**

**The problem is that I can't find inspiration for this story anymore. I don't know what I should've done with it. I've hit a massive writers block and its not leaving.**

**Sorry.**

**With love,**

**Rabbit. **


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